Their usually ultra-positive coach isn't just pissed. He's questioning what they're made of, their very manhood.

"Kubiak came in and challenged us as men," Texans safety Danieal Manning says. "He knows what this team can be. We all know what type of talent we have and how this is unacceptable.

"He put it all out there. He put a mirror on us and we saw what he saw and we didn't like it."

Kubiak calls for the Texans to be more Patriot like, to play and prepare with the relentless, merciless intensity New England shows in bulldozing their national stage visions 42-14.

"It was an ass whipping," veteran wide receiver Andre Johnson says.

"He told us, 'You seen what it takes to be a championship team,' " defensive end Antonio Smith says. "You've seen it up close. Now, are you going to do it? Are you going to commit?' "

If this isn't Kubiak shoving all his chips to the center of the table Jim Fassel style, it's as close as he's liable to ever come.

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But the Texans' season will not hinge on whether Kubiak keeps throwing and puts the one player he can't afford to lose (Matt Schaub) at risk down 28 points in the fourth quarter. It's going to come down to how an extremely talented, but still somewhat immature team responds to his manhood challenge.

Kubiak goes out of character to make sure the Texans find theirs in time.

"Not quite like that before," Manning says when asked if Kubiak's ever delivered a similar, unmistakable, direct challenge to the entire team.

The coach knows the now 11-2 Texans are at the telling point in their season. Sure, they'll never be taken seriously nationally again until they beat a team like the Patriots in the playoffs. But that's not Kubiak's concern. Not right now.

Very un-Kubiak like and I like it. I hope it pissed the team off and hurt their feelings enough to turn this around. Quickly. We've got the Colts at home and they've proven themselves to not be pushovers. Not a given easy out. The whole team needs to take that ass chewing to heart and get their act together before they find themselves playing in the wild card round.

where was the TIMEOUT in the 1st Q when brady was marching down quicktime?

break the tempo with a timeout, before it becomes a big lead!!!

if theres one to be blamed for sunday's ass whipping its kubiak.
he needs the mirror more than anyone else...

And that's the difference. Didnt bilichek call a time out on the second play of the game after Foster had a nice gain? He did it for a reason to calm there D down and have them refocus before we gained momentum to start that game.

Kubiak calls for the Texans to be more Patriot like, to play and prepare with the relentless, merciless intensity New England shows in bulldozing their national stage visions 42-14.

I like it. Kubiak has been on championship caliber teams, both as a player and as a coach. Many folks forget he was a back up QB on three Super Bowl teams, and also has three Super Bowl rings as a coach of both the Broncos and 49ers. He KNOWS what it takes to be a champion and he's calling them out and telling them truth when they need to hear it.

And I have no doubt that he is his own harshest critic. He's not going to air that stuff in public or even to his team, but I feel confident that he's gut checking himself as a head coach. The way this team has been in the two losses are a reflection of him as HC. And he knows these players will have to dig deep to find those intangibles to beat guys like Brady and Manning in the post-season.

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"I could sense it from the coin toss," Smith says of a routine led by Brady (of course). "It was business. Straight up business. They'd barely look at you. They'd shake your hand firmly, but they wouldn't look you in the eye. They were letting us know it was on."

I am glad the players recognized it. The Patriots are a dynasty, as great as the '90's Cowboys, '80's 49ers, and '70's Steelers. They exude confidence and a business attitude as cold-blooded as a professional hitman. This comes from the head coach, too. They take care of the little details every day and expect greatness from everyone, not just the stars of the team. The Texans are on their way, but they have to take it to the next level. Stop getting wide eyed about MNF games against the Patriots. Start getting steely-eyed like Clint Eastwood in a western.

__________________"Football is only a diversion." ~ Houston Texans, Inc.

And that's the difference. Didnt bilichek call a time out on the second play of the game after Foster had a nice gain? He did it for a reason to calm there D down and have them refocus before we gained momentum to start that game.

Umm...the Pats had 12 men on the field. At least that was what the commentators said. Yes it looks like Belichick made an adjustment but I seriously doubt he takes a timeout after 2 plays and less than 1 minute off the clock just to make an adjustment.

As for all the "Kubiak should take the blame" peeps - he has been crucified by fans & media after losses for always saying "it's on me". I'm sure he takes responsiblity for the problems as usual even if it isn't reported. Kubiak has flaws - taking the blame has never been one of them though.

Also the problems in the Patriots game were from the top down. Kubiak, Phillips and the players blew it. You can blame Kubiak all you want but it's not Kubiak that failed to catch balls, throw balls poorly, failed to pick up fumbles or make stupid penalties. Coaches can only do so much. Players still have to execute what they are coached to do (or not to do). This was a team loss.